Upper East Side Got Greener In Recent Years, New Study Finds

UPPER EAST SIDE, NY — If the Upper East Side looks a bit leafier these days than it once did, you aren't imagining things: the neighborhood's tree coverage has grown in recent years, according to a new study.

The first-of-its-kind report by the Nature Conservancy used three-dimensional imaging research done by the city to map the amount of land covered by overhead tree canopy. It found that between 2010 and 2017, New York's tree coverage grew by more than 3,200 acres, or about 1.7 percent.

Broken down by neighborhood, the Upper East Side's Community District 8 ranks near the middle of the citywide pack by its pace of tree growth. The neighborhood's canopy grew by about 1.7 percent from 2010 to 2020 — a net gain of 21 acres.

That's a more modest increase than some nearby neighborhoods, like Central Harlem, where tree coverage jumped by 37 acres, or 4.2 percent, during the same span. But the Upper East Side may have had less room to grow in the first place — its "stocking rate," or the percentage of available space being used by trees, is second-highest in the city, at 88 percent. (The Upper West Side is highest, at 90 percent.)

Not all neighborhoods were as fortunate as the Upper East Side. Waterfront areas of Southern Brooklyn and Queens, like Coney Island, Canarsie and the Rockaways, lost much of their tree canopies during those eight years due to flooding from Superstorm Sandy.

Another notable area that lost trees in that span: Central Park, which experienced a 2.9 percent drop in its canopy coverage, amounting to a net loss of 25 acres.

A spokesperson for the Central Park Conservancy told Patch that the loss could be attributed to extreme weather — including Sandy, the 2011 Halloween snowstorm and Hurricane Irene.

Invasive species have also played a role, like the Emerald ash borer, which threatens the park's ash trees; and Dutch elm disease, which is caused by a fungus and spread by beetles.

"Central Park's tree canopy is healthy and well cared for by the Central Park Conservancy's tree care team," said spokesperson Arica VanBoxtel, adding that New Yorkers could help the park stay healthy by staying on walking paths and not stepping on exposed tree roots.

Trees play a key role in urban equity, helping to lower temperatures, convert carbon dioxide into oxygen and absorb rainwater, researchers told THE CITY, which first reported on the study. Mapping current tree coverage can help the city protect and improve it in the future — especially in low-income neighborhoods where vegetation is harder to find, they said.

Read the full "Future Forest NYC" study at the Nature Conservancy website.